Just a little guidance
by LadyKnightOfHollyrose
Summary: Eventual SauHina AU Hinata, a counseller, has a new client who refuses to talk to her. Will this improve with their weekly appointment, or wil he continue his silence?
1. Chapter 1

**_Just A Little Guidance_**

**_Disclaimer:_** I don't own Naruto

**_Summary:_** Eventual SauHina AU Hinata, a counseller, has a new client who refuses to talk to her. Will this improve with their weekly appointment, or wil he continue his silence?

_Chapter 1_

The door clicked shut.

Hinata sighed. Only one more person to go now. One more hour until she'd be free to go home.

After briefly reading through her notes, she stacked them neatly before deciding to put them into a folder. Humming quietly to herself, she thought over the appointment that had just ended.

Konohamaru had made significant progress over the past two months or so since he began his guidance counselling on a weekly basis. His attempts to injure his grandfather had become much less frequent and Hinata could tell that he was a good kid at heart. From what she had heard from him in the last to sessions, Konohamaru was sick of being called 'Professor Sarutobi's Grandson' – he just wanted an identity of his own!

Maybe next week she'd find out how Konohamaru had decided to get himself noticed in such a …weird…way.

Hinata jumped a little as she heard voices just outside her door. She hurriedly tapped at her laptop to see who she was seeing next – the last person of the day would be the new client. Scanning the lists of names and times on the screen, Hinata strained her ears to hear the conversation taking place just outside her office door…

"All you have to do is go in there and talk… and nothing you say in there will be repeated outside that room."

"Hn. This is pointless."

"Just give it a try!" The first voice insisted, "Plus, if this becomes regular, I'll get an extra hour to read 'Icha' every week! Don't worry I'll be just out here."

"Hn." Was the unenthusiastic reply.

The door knob began to turn and Hinata glanced hastily at her screen:

Uchiha Sasuke.

The door opened a little to admit a young man of about 24 (Hinata's age) muttering darkly something that sounded suspiciously like "perverted moron".

He closed the door behind him and hovered in front of it. Hinata waited for a few moments nervously, before realising that he wasn't going to move on his own.

"P-please, take a s-seat." Hinata mentally slapped herself – why couldn't she stop herself from stuttering? She had stuttered for as long as she could remember, though she had recently started conquering it. The annoyance still resurfaced, however, when she was nervous. And being a timid girl meant that it cropped up at the worst of times.

The man turned his head slightly to rest onyx eyes on her. His raven coloured hair was swept back to frame his face, leaving his line of vision clear. Hinata squirmed a little under his cold stare as he made his way towards a chair.

As he sat down, Hinata started the normal introduction…

"Hi. M-my name is Hyuuga Hinata and I-I'm your guidance counsellor."

The man continued to survey her coolly and Hinata felt her cheeks heat up. Trying to break the uncomfortable silence, she gabbled;

"And y-you must be Uchiha S-sasuke."

He inclined his head slightly, eyes never leaving hers.

Sasuke noticed her squirm a little under his gaze. Her eyebrows were furrowed slightly as she lowered her pearly orbs to stare at her desk. A porcelain hand went up to fiddle with a strand of her indigo hair.

"Um…" her gentle voice was so quiet that he had to lean forward to catch her words.

The Uchiha let a smirk touch his pale face. This would be easy. A few awkward questions here and there and Sasuke would be free of this stupid idea. This woman had less confidence than he had patience. This would be the first and last day of his 'guidance counselling' here.

"W-well," The sound made Sasuke jump. "As your counsellor, y-you can speak to me about anything. Also, n-nothing you say in here will b-be repeated."

Her words were greeted by silence.

Hinata fidgeted uncomfortably in here chair. While she did appreciate peace and stillness, this silence was suffocating! She opened her mouth and drew in a breath. About to speak, she was cut off.

"You're shy." It was more of a statement than a question.

Well it didn't take a genius to figure that out. Talk about stating the obvious! Hinata wanted to scream 'well, duh!' at the top of her lungs (though that probably wouldn't have made too much of a difference). Aside from the fact that her brain would completely overrule such uncharacteristic behaviour, it wouldn't solve a thing. The man would continue to sit there, smirking silently 'till the end of the hour.

In order to get **_him_** to talk to _her_, **_she_** would have to talk to _him_.

"I…uh…suppose so…"

"Then why are you a counsellor? You're surrounded by people all day and your job requires you to talk to people. It's not exactly what you'd call a shy-person-job."

Sasuke smiled to himself, though he didn't let this show on his face. This tactic was a little different to what he had done the last time his mentor, Kakashi, had tried to force him into therapy.

But then again, he'd been about nine at the time.

He surveyed Hinata carefully, trying to gauge her reaction.

Hinata's eyes had widened by several centimetres on hearing her client's little speech. It was the most he'd said in the twenty minutes that he'd been in her office. Then, after getting over that fact that he _could_ in fact speak in more than monosyllables, she cocked her head to one side considering how to answer.

Usually she would have said "None of your freaking business, we're here to discuss **you** not me." Ok, who was she kidding? She would have liked to say that but would have, in truth, said something a lot more polite. Then if the Uchiha persisted, she would have had this client assigned to one of her colleagues.

Judging by the conversation she'd overheard outside the door and the brooding face before her, Hinata concluded that this was probably what he had intended from the beginning…

So, she'd tell him the truth.

And why not? She supposed that he did have a valid enough point…

She had been silent for a while now. At first she had looked shocked. Now the expression on her face seemed more resigned…

'Bye bye Hyuuga Hinata.' Sasuke thought. 'Wait a minute. Hyuuga? Why did that sound so familiar? He discarded the thought for now. It looked like she was going to speak.

"U-uchiha-san. Being a shy person form childhood, I've h-had to go through the process of counselling before t-too." Sasuke was shocked. Why was she telling him something so _personal_? He was practically a stranger! Her plain eyes weren't really focussing on him and there was a hint of determination buried in their depths that was almost undetectable. The sudden decrease in stuttering was caused by being absorbed in some distant memory… She continued, "I didn't like the way that the people in charge handled things. They were p-patronising and asked lots of…unrelated and personal questions. I want to h-help people who need the guidance w-without making them feel uncomfortable about it."

Sasuke was both disgusted and intrigued by this openness. Since when did the _shrink_ answer the _client's_ questions? Curiously, he pressed the girl further;

"But you have to talk to people. _All day_." He was careful to keep his voice flat and devoid of any emotion.

"W-well… It's just one-on-one right? I c-can handle that." 'Just about' she added to herself whilst Sasuke repeated these thoughts in his own mind, smirking.

Still, Sasuke couldn't help but feel a little uneasy. Why was she telling _him_ this? She should have kicked him out of her office by now, but she hadn't. Anyway, the only person who would discuss something personal with him, was his (sort-of) best friend, Naruto. And still, this was only after he had known him for a while and was sure that he could trust Sasuke. It was strange, but the Uchiha felt like he was _obligated_ to tell her something in return.

As he contemplated this, Hinata sighed wistfully. How she'd love to go home and cuddle up by the radiator with a hot chocolate and a good book! Glancing at her laptop, she noticed the time. Maybe her hot chocolate wasn't so far out of reach as she'd thought. Smiling to herself slightly, she extended her hand, startling Sasuke out of his thoughts.

"Well, Uchiha-san, thi-this is the end of t-today's appointment. I hope to see you n-next week."

Instead of shaking her hand, he nodded and stood up, zipping up his jacket as he did so. Hinata hadn't noticed his simple yet expensive looking attire before- she'd been too nervous; he wore a red sports jacket and a pair of black jeans. He made for the door and Hinata began to pack her bag.

The Uchiha had almost reached the door and Hinata was unplugging her laptop when her desk phone rang. She picked it up.

"H-hello? Neji ni-san!" She paused, listening to the caller.

'Neji? And she said her name was Hyuuga? Where have I heard these names before?' Sasuke wondered frowning. Hoping to hear more, he bent down as if to tie up a shoe lace.

"It has been a long time… Bring Tenten-chan too!"

There was another pause.

"Don't be silly – just make sure you get there on time. You know that as soon as Kiba-kun smells food, he will try to eat everything. Temari's fan will only be able to stop him for a while."

''Cause that was oh-so-very productive,' thought Sasuke glumly. 'What a waste of ti- wait. How could I forget? The Hyuugas are the owners of "Byakugan™"'

Hyuuga Neji was rumoured to be somewhere near the top of the company… Perhaps another trip here would be beneficial if he could get this woman to talk. If her sudden cease in stammering and the whole "Neji ni-san" thing was any indication, his new counsellor was quite close to this Hyuuga Neji.

Still, as Sasuke stepped out of the office, he couldn't help but think with amusement, 'Even a little mouse like her has plans on a Friday evening…not that I mind – I have work to do.'

As he walked over to the reception, his mentor Kakashi poked his head out from his book. Almost reluctantly, he put his beloved "Icha Icha Paradise" into his coat pocket and began to speak.

"I didn't hear any gruesome sound effects or screaming so I've arranged another appointment – same time neat week. Also, that pink haired receptionist wanted to give you her business card."

"Hn." Sasuke glanced at the desk in an uninterested manner, then looked away – he didn't have the time to waste on people like her. He ignored her completely, striding out of the building as quickly as grace would let him.

* * *

Putting down the phone receiver, Hinata smiled to herself. Grabbing her coat, laptop and shoulder-bag, she hurried towards the door, almost forgetting to pick up her keys.

After retrieving them, she scurried out of her office, locking the door a split second later.

If she had to make dinner for eight, she'd need to get to the supermarket soon! With this thought in mind, she began to shuffle toward the door, only to be cornered by the pink-haired receptionist, Haruno Sakura.

"What was he like Hinata??"

"W-who?" Although she had become friends with the part-time receptionist, part-time medical student, she could still be quite intimidating!

"Uchiha Sasuke of course! He's _so_ hot!"

"…"

"You just spent a whole hour in a room with the owner of "Sharingan". What did he tell you?"

"Nothing, really… Sakura-chan, I really have to g-go…"

And with that, she rushed out of the door. Owner of "Sharingan" eh? She'd have to tell Neji about this…

* * *

A/N: This is the first time I've written anything Naruto, let alone SasuHina... Also, sorry if parts of it didn't flow. Please R&R if you read it, whether to say you liked it, if you have any advice or if you hated it.

Hollyrose


	2. Chapter 2

**_Just A Little Guidance_**

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Naruto

**Summary:** Eventual SauHina AU Hinata, a counseller, has a new client who refuses to talk to her. Will this improve with their weekly appointment, or wil he continue his silence?

_Chapter 2_

Juggling her grocery bags, Hinata tried to relocate her keys from the depths of her shoulder bag. Barely managing to do so, she unlocked the front door. Shoving her keys into her coat pocket with a little difficulty, she sighed.

If only the instant ramen hadn't been on offer! At such great value, Hinata would've been a fool to ignore it and even _she_ had days when she didn't feel like cooking anything from scratch. Besides, the last time she'd checked, ramen supplies were running generously low…

Stepping inside gingerly, Hinata pushed the door shut. She'd just began to shuffle towards the kitchen, when she was greeted with an enthusiastic "Arf!"

"Akamaru!" Hinata exclaimed. The little dog wagged his tail. His hind legs began to bend and the Hyuuga could only watch in horror as he sprang into her already full arms.

Unable to regain her balance, she and Akamaru toppled over, the contents of her bags scattering themselves across the floor.

Hinata smiled none the less. Giving him a quick rub between the ears she tried to gather the dropped groceries into their bags again.

"Akamaru? Where the heck are you? I don't care if you hate baths, you're having on anyway!"

A brown haired young man marched down the stairs, almost tripping over Hinata – he scarcely regained his balance in time to stop him from falling onto the Hyuuga. A hand went behind his head as he looked at the scene before him.

"Woah, sorry Hinata. Did Akamaru do this?"

"It's okay Kiba-kun. Please, don't worry about it…"

Leaping off the stairs, Kiba helped to pick up the remainder of the fallen shopping, and insisted on carrying it into the kitchen for her. He talked non-stop all the way, informing her about Akamaru's latest 'strategy' to get out of having a bath.

After dumping the bags onto one of the worktops, he apologised again.

"Do you want any help with making dinner?" asked. There was a grin plastered across his face, slightly obscuring the red triangular tattoos on each of his cheeks as he reminisced; "It was so much fun last time!"

Hinata glanced up at him – she'd been stocking up the fridge with the new supplies. She hadn't realised that he was coming so dangerously close to **that** topic. Truth be told, Kiba and food did not go well together. Or rather, it didn't unless Kiba was stuffing his face with the food in question. In short, he wasn't such a great cook.

Hinata struggled to form words. Even if he was like a brother to her, how could she put this without being mean?

"Hey, Dog-boy." Hinata started a little; she hadn't realised that was anyone in the adjoining living/dining room. "Don't you have a mutt to wash or something? I don't want it to stink the house out or anything."

"Oh yeah!" It seemed that Kiba had momentarily forgotten about the chore. With a thunderous bark of "**Akamaru**!!" he scrambled back into the hallway to find his beloved 'mutt'.

Hinata breathed a sigh of relief. It seemed as though they were safe. For now. Turning to the previous speaker, Hinata smiled.

"Thank you Temari."

"Don't sweat it. I can still remember the last time Kiba tried to '_help_' in the kitchen. It was enough to convince me to never let him come even a meter near the kitchen, even if I have to guard it myself, for his own safety as well as ours!" She shuddered at the less than pleasant memory.

Hinata rinsed some vegetables and began to chop them. "Neji nii-san and Tenten-chan will be joining us today… you don't mind do you?"

Temari had just been tying her blonde hair into her four customary ponytails when she gave her housemate a strange look.

"Hinata, you pay just a much rent here as I do, so it's up to you. But I _don't_ mind. It'll be nice to catch up with Tenten. They haven't been over for _ages_."

Hinata nodded. Her cousin had been so busy recently that he and Tenten hadn't come over for the weekly Friday dinner for a while now…

"Is Shikamaru- kun going to come?"

"Pfft. Too 'troublesome.'" Temari rolled her eyes at her boyfriend's antics. "Stupid, lazy idiot. I'll probably go and see him later on though."

Hinata nodded absently. She'd make some extra anyway – Temari could take some of the food to Shikamaru since he'd probably find it too troublesome to pick up the phone to order some take-out, let alone physically getting up to _make_ something to eat.

Smiling to herself slightly, she turned on the oven.

'Preheat for 10 minutes… or was it 15?'

* * *

-Knock- -Knock- 

He groaned. Maybe if he just ignored it, it would go away.

-Knock- -Knock-

Apparently not.

Still, he was unwilling to acknowledge the presence on the other side of his apartment door.

-Knock- -Knock-

So persistent! Nonetheless, he wouldn't budge. He was in the middle of reading a very important report that needed to be replied for tomorrow. He absolutely _refused_ to be distracted.

"Oi Sasuke. I know you're there. Open the door already!"

Well, so much for that idea. Sasuke groaned again. "Get lost Naruto." He said this half-heartedly though; he knew his plans to finish his work were literally down that drain, and that he'd certainly not get any more of it done now…

Removing his laptop from his knees, he sighed and made his way to the door. Reluctantly, he pulled his door open, though only very slightly. Peering around the edge, he was greeted by the sight of a disgustingly-happy-looking (to him anyway) blond.

Sasuke glared at him. "What do you want?" he demanded rudely.

"Huh? No, hi Naruto, how are you doing?"

Sasuke continued to glare at the 'intruder' (of his work, that is). Naruto tried again.

"I come bearing gifts..?" He thrust his very full arms forwards, revealing a few carrier bags; each full enough to rip them with the amount that had been stuffed into them at any second.

Sasuke scowled. He _did_ open the door, however. He hadn't the time to be loitering in doorways talking to people. Or rather having people talk to him – he generally gave less response than a plank of wood.

Naruto waltzed into the apartment. His effect was immediate (as always). Hurricane Naruto had hit the building, and now there was takeout all over the table, a selection of DVDs strewn across the floor and a few _rattles_ and _chinks_ could be heard from the kitchen.

Sasuke trailed in behind Naruto and dismissed the mess that he'd made – it was to be expected. Flopping onto the couch again and gluing his eyes to the laptop's monitor again, he repeated his question (although he had some idea of what to expect).

"What do you want, Naruto?"

Naruto's features lit up with a bright grin that made his electric blue eyes shine. "We-ell, _you_ were refusing to come _out_ (unlike any normal person on a Friday evening) so I thought that since you seem to want to be a hermit so much, I'd join you! Plus, Ichiraku's was on the way so I picked something to eat up."

"Naruto, Ichiraku's is on the other side of town," was the Uchiha's flat response.

Still, Naruto remained unfazed.

"Ah, but when you own a car, _everything's_ on the way."

Well, there was no arguing with that.

"What's with _those_?" Onyx eyes glared at the DVD cases littered across his floor.

"They're called _DVD's_. They have movies on them. You know what _movies_ are, don't you?"

Sasuke scowled at him.

As Naruto marched back into the small adjoining kitchen, Sasuke turned his attention back to the report.

He scanned rows of text, all various letters and numbers, enough to make any normal person feel as though they'd been running continuously, head-first into a brick wall for several hours at a time. But not Uchiha Sasuke.

Scrolling down, he shook his head and growled in frustration. There were parts missing! Punching in letters on the keyboard furiously, he noted the bits and pieces of information that needed to be added as well as some corrections. It was a good thing that he'd insisted on proof reading the report before anyone else had seen it. He could understand that Udon was having problems at home (no doubt from his girlfriend) but that was no excuse to be using the wrong figures, omit vital details or such. Having a place at "Sharingan" was a privilege, not a right. Sasuke would have to take Udon aside and inform him that his carelessness would not be overlooked and to pull himself together. Sasuke couldn't afford to employ anyone who would contribute to the company slowly fall into ruin once agai-

Sasuke was brought out of his thoughts by the appearance of a tanned hand dancing between his face and the laptop's screen. Naruto shook his head as his friend blinked bright spots from his vision.

"Tear yourself away from your beloved girlfriend a while and have some ramen before it gets cold. And pick a film already!"

Sasuke glanced at Naruto pointedly. Lately he had been calling anything even remotely work-related his 'girlfriend'; including the laptop, piles of paperwork, and even the satellite navigation system on occasion.

It was slightly irritating to say the least.

"If all you're going to do is babble about my supposed girlfriend you can get lost and take your ramen with you."

Although his tone held some bite, he hadn't really completely meant it. He hadn't had enough time to order any groceries so food supplies were low in the apartment. And although he wasn't quite as ramen-crazed as the blond, he did like the taste of it (not to mention that he hadn't had any for quite a while). Even worse was the fact that Naruto knew this. It was apparent by the way he was grinning as he shoved a filled bowl at Sasuke's nose.

Inhaling the scent, he gave up. Finally clicking the 'send' icon, he dug into his dinner, glancing at the variety of films on offer.

* * *

Hinata fluttered about the kitchen; stirring here and garnishing there, pouring the various delicacies into their respective dishes whilst taking care of any spills in the process. 

Apart from the occasional sizzle from the hob, the house was relatively quiet – after successfully washing Akamaru, Kiba was towelling the dog down. Temari was trying to persuade her brother to come out of his bedroom for dinner and to only do work _at_ work. The only reason that _this_ was done fairly quietly was that her brother, Gaara, could have quite the temper when distracted from his work.

Well, all was quiet until a certain someone got home. The front door burst open. Hinata jumped. Gaara ignored it. Temari paused, and then began to drag her brother down the stairs. Kiba peered around his bedroom door curiously. Akamaru began to bark (again).

"I'm ba-ack!"

Kiba turned his attention back to Akamaru. Temari continued pass the door without looking up and Gaara remained indifferent. Hinata began to set the table.

There was an indignant huff from the door (which had been slammed shut. One can only wonder why the _door_ deserved such abuse).

"What, so is no-one going to ask how it went? Or did you all just forget?"

There was no response.

The blonde stalked sulkily to her room and took her jacket off. Loosening her tie, she un-rumpled her blue skirt, feeling a little hurt.

Marching down to the kitchen, she greeted the occupants (Hinata, Temari, and Gaara) with icy glares.

Hinata (who hadn't even noticed) asked as she did every day,

"How was your day?"

Ino looked up.

"It was _great_! That Maeko – when she heard that the entire thing had been caught on CCTV, her case completely collapsed, and so did her client! I mean I know that we won't hear the verdict for a while, but come on. You can't get any guiltier than that!"

Beaming, Hinata congratulated her, then set about retrieving the 'good plates'.

Temari just shrugged at the news remarking,

"You got lucky. Not every case will be so 'exciting' or straight forward. And since this is your first independent case, you'll be expected to live up to it-"

"And I **_will_**," interrupted Ino. Although it was clear to everyone else that Temari was trying to tell her not to get too ahead of herself, Ino remained (or chose to remain) totally oblivious.

To this, Temari rolled her eyes, thinking 'Typical Ino.'

Ino continued to bounce around the kitchen, attempting to help Hinata but instead, she only got in the way. Of course, Hinata didn't tell her this; she was just happy that Ino was in such a good mood – recently Ino had been having to stay up pretty late in preparation for her first case (although she didn't really show it, she got nervous and being a bit of a perfectionist, she liked to look over every single possibility) so Hinata thought she deserved a little limelight.

Coming out of her reverie, Ino turned her attention to her best friend,

"How was your day? Anything interesting happen?"

Hinata opened her mouth to answer, but was interrupted by the doorbell. Glancing at the clock on the microwave, Hinata rushed to get everything onto the table, whilst telling Ino,

"That must be Neji nii-san and Tenten!"

"Ok, I'll get it." Ino disappeared up the stairs.

* * *

A/N: I had to stop this chapter here since it was getting so long, and I wanted to make sure I had another chapter up before my birthday (11 days to go!!). Hope you like the chapter (even though it was a little slow - this is just so that you can see what they are like at home...), please remember to leave a review - whether you love it or hate it! Thanks and have a great new year! 

Hollyrose


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